yeah, there's probably some subliminal mcdonough going on in that. if only there were a way to make it more fashionable than mcdonough who always comes off as being rather dowdy.
thanks for invoking mcdonough! this also fall into ed mazria's dream of upgrading all the building stock in this country before 2050 or so.
I watched a few 16 story office towers across from the cherry hill mall in suburban philly, get gutted and revamped as butt-ugly condos. so suburbia does get recycled, just not a frequently as urban buildings and land.
Disposable architecture is taking our current wasteful tendencies and multiplying them becuase they are "temporary". Temporary or throw away architecture seems to be anthithetical. Of course traditionally, architecture is supposed to endure. But, the enormous amount of energy that goes into a building should be utilized for a structure that can last as long as possible.
I read your entire post and really very nice and good information you share here on the future of The Buddha of Suburbia. Thanks for sharing this good info here.
Ellen Dunham-Jones made a great point several months back in this article.
For all the urbanist-snobbery amongst architects, the biggest challenge for designers over the next 50 years will be to retrofit and infill what already exists in suburbia.
Bring that design problem on, ryanj! I've been fascinated by revamping suburbia since college 20 years ago, just haven't found a way to make a living doing it (instead I'm remodeling the houses themselves).
me too, LB! (at least you have work) Some of Teddy Cruz's work is really the only successful precedent I know of.
I am also fascinated by the idea of repackaging big box retailers (which I believe are unfortunately here to stay) for existing pedestrian-scaled developments (more of an asset-repositioning strategy). That is if the institutions themselves must stay.
For all the urbanist-snobbery amongst architects, the biggest challenge for designers over the next 50 years will be to retrofit and infill what already exists in suburb. we have been taking this on for over 12 years.
check out our website section on Reinventing Space: (http://designstudio-c.com/reinventing-space/) the lead in on the hope page is better but, you get the point.
wendell cox, what a weird dude. you don't meet too many sprawl apologists these days. loved the large backyard argument too. genius.
while i don't believe transit to be the panacea that many in this field believe it to be, i don't see the point of attacking portland for its transit system or its growth boundary which, having visited portland several times, it's hard to argue against its success. the problem i see is with other regions assuming that adopting a portland-style city plan will solve that region's ills the same way it did for portland. each city is different, and each city has its own specific planning challenges. there is no one size fits all plan. the lack of adaptability to circumstances and a general thoughtlessness in design are the real dangers whether that comes from the lefty transit-oriented new urbanist or the right-wing laissez-faire sprawl advocate. both are equally dangerous.
it's hilarious how he compares infill rowhouses to mcmansions and expects anyone to take him seriously. Two seconds of googling will show that there is in fact new 4 to an acre product available in Portland (including within the city boundaries), and that there is 15 acre product available in suburban Atlanta (including a big TOD in Marietta, of all places). Cox just makes stuff up in his capacity as paid shill for suburban homebuilders. Unfortunately, the only people who believe in are legislators.
I love him in the sense that he is pretty batshit smart!
But, oh man, did I hate what he was smart about. I really, really loathed him and the whole Cato Institute. In fact, you could say I loved to hate them.
I think it is awesome though that he has turned from mouthpiece-to-apologist. That makes him kind of awesome in my book.
Ya know.. someone from that organization once proposed that international child trafficking could be reduced if only the sale of children for commercial gain was legalized... being a libertarian requires a special kind of batshit smartness, to use your term ;-)
I admire anyone who takes libertarian or populist views (even if I hate them for it) because of that inherent quality of having to really analyze and synthesize viewpoints with an air of logos behind it.
I'm kind of tired of ethos and pathos appeals in arenas like this.
Like, I completely (read: noticably and physically) cringe when I hear the phrase "American Dream."
Suburbia aint all bad... Not all suburban america fits into that SUV driving atlanta mcmansion stereotype that is propogated by urban academics an photobooks... Some photos seem a little contrived in that they don't show any of the real people who live in the vast majority of suburban sprawl... Without showing how the buidlings are used, it is writing a narative based on buildings only... Ignoring landscape and human landscape or trajectories or culture...
It's only relatively recently that suburbs started to become mcmansions and upper-middle class clone communities... The older, more developed suburban midwest for example had real community and randomness to the vegetation and houses...
The sort of "ugly beautiful" / down to earth / retro random 70's 80's 90's furniture / chorme meets orange colored fabric meets red carpet / brilliant eclectic tackiness / lived in / people would rather walk and ride their bikes across fields and lawns and pavement and curbs, band of kids on bmx's, jump your cul de sac curb, cut across yards, past your winding street pattern and toss the bike over the fence, lower middle-class, goonies 80's, sustainable (people reuse everything, from your grandma's old rockingchair to your neighbor's yard sale retro coffee table), neighborhood barbecuing, trick-or-treating, mini-van and retro wood pattern stationwagon or 35 year old pickup truck driving, star wars generation, goonies or bart simpson america, fishing trip, multi-colored siding non-pretentious, nothing fancy or dressed up, but organically evolved suburbia... people just up-and-plant a tree or do up their garden as they see fit hand built sandbox or playground suburbia... full-of-memory suburbia that consists of real down to earth people, safe neighborhoods for families, hard working middle-income families and decent good natured neighbors who all know each other... invited the neighborhood over for a summer barbecue... ride your bike down to the creek and catch frogs and feed them fireflies... then head down to 7-11 for slurpies and football cards... safe enough to leave your back screen door unlocked and walk into your neighbor's house familiarity kind of suburbia... people prefer walking around the neighborhood to driving suburbia... the big overgrown willow tree landmark kids would climb on and swing on the vines like tarzan suburbia... go fishing in the pond next to the fire station suburbia...
That's the kind of "eclectic evolving" suburbia I grew up in... So not all of suburbia is like the upper-middle class lifeless homogeneity or identical box mcmansions of recent failed developments... there are actually some older suburbs that have real communities and local histories and character... Where every cheap lower-middle-class home is a different color of siding, nothing matches, but to be frank, it's nice, unpretentious... I go back there and it amazes me that things have remained the same, neighbors still live there, except that vegetation has become so much larger, trees are huge now...
yeah... boston has some nice suburbs... alston, brookline, further out places like waltham etc. suburban communities which have been around for quite a while
streetcar or transit accessible, quiet, and pedestrian
i think if you gave people, suburbanites a choice, most people would rather walk or hop on a streetcar or bike to a place than drive a car... it's just nicer...
i think communities, whether in a city or in a suburb take time to develop... there is the element of undesign, the falling into randomness that is necessary to take over and create some local memory and history there... so your urban design can only do so much... provide ammenity for community... the real thing, real community and livability is something that requires time and happens when the thing takes on a life of its own, when people take ownership of the space and fuck up your pristine little design in some way... make it their own... 2 cents
the future of suburbia
that sounds cradle-to-cradle urbanism or suburbanism...oh fuck the -isms
yeah, there's probably some subliminal mcdonough going on in that. if only there were a way to make it more fashionable than mcdonough who always comes off as being rather dowdy.
thanks for invoking mcdonough! this also fall into ed mazria's dream of upgrading all the building stock in this country before 2050 or so.
I watched a few 16 story office towers across from the cherry hill mall in suburban philly, get gutted and revamped as butt-ugly condos. so suburbia does get recycled, just not a frequently as urban buildings and land.
Cradle to cradle urbanism.
Man it can be applied to anything..
how about snake plissken urbanism?
Maybe there's hope.
William Levitt's very own Levitt and Sons has filed for bankruptcy. The father of suburbia must be rolling in his grave right now.
Disposable architecture is taking our current wasteful tendencies and multiplying them becuase they are "temporary". Temporary or throw away architecture seems to be anthithetical. Of course traditionally, architecture is supposed to endure. But, the enormous amount of energy that goes into a building should be utilized for a structure that can last as long as possible.
Oh yeah, by the way........Kurt Russel is back.
spotted on world changing
Hello barry lehrman,
I read your entire post and really very nice and good information you share here on the future of The Buddha of Suburbia. Thanks for sharing this good info here.
of the NYTimes revisits the rise and fall of Slumburbia today.
year-on-year change in home prices per square feet, Miami = -42%. I think it was already -40% the previous year.
That's what happens when suburban housing marketings are asked to regulate themselves...
Ellen Dunham-Jones made a great point several months back in this article.
For all the urbanist-snobbery amongst architects, the biggest challenge for designers over the next 50 years will be to retrofit and infill what already exists in suburbia.
Bring that design problem on, ryanj! I've been fascinated by revamping suburbia since college 20 years ago, just haven't found a way to make a living doing it (instead I'm remodeling the houses themselves).
me too, LB! (at least you have work) Some of Teddy Cruz's work is really the only successful precedent I know of.
I am also fascinated by the idea of repackaging big box retailers (which I believe are unfortunately here to stay) for existing pedestrian-scaled developments (more of an asset-repositioning strategy). That is if the institutions themselves must stay.
Look me up if you ever need a partna'!
did anyone see the ULI article on Housing in America: the Next Decade.
http://www.uli.org/sitecore/content/ULI2Home/News/MediaCenter/PressReleases/2010%20archives/Content/~/media/Documents/ResearchAndPublications/Fellows/McIlwain/HousinginAmerica.ashx
also not to self promote but...
For all the urbanist-snobbery amongst architects, the biggest challenge for designers over the next 50 years will be to retrofit and infill what already exists in suburb. we have been taking this on for over 12 years.
check out our website section on Reinventing Space: (http://designstudio-c.com/reinventing-space/) the lead in on the hope page is better but, you get the point.
The link may not work so here it is again: http://designstudio-c.com/reinventing-space
We converted a 60,000 sqft Service Merchandise bog box to a country and western bar with a large banquet center.
retrofit PLUS density
enemy propaganda:
http://www.newgeography.com/content/001414-atlanta-ground-zero-american-dream
wendell cox, what a weird dude. you don't meet too many sprawl apologists these days. loved the large backyard argument too. genius.
while i don't believe transit to be the panacea that many in this field believe it to be, i don't see the point of attacking portland for its transit system or its growth boundary which, having visited portland several times, it's hard to argue against its success. the problem i see is with other regions assuming that adopting a portland-style city plan will solve that region's ills the same way it did for portland. each city is different, and each city has its own specific planning challenges. there is no one size fits all plan. the lack of adaptability to circumstances and a general thoughtlessness in design are the real dangers whether that comes from the lefty transit-oriented new urbanist or the right-wing laissez-faire sprawl advocate. both are equally dangerous.
it's hilarious how he compares infill rowhouses to mcmansions and expects anyone to take him seriously. Two seconds of googling will show that there is in fact new 4 to an acre product available in Portland (including within the city boundaries), and that there is 15 acre product available in suburban Atlanta (including a big TOD in Marietta, of all places). Cox just makes stuff up in his capacity as paid shill for suburban homebuilders. Unfortunately, the only people who believe in are legislators.
Oh man, I love Wendell Cox.
I love him in the sense that he is pretty batshit smart!
But, oh man, did I hate what he was smart about. I really, really loathed him and the whole Cato Institute. In fact, you could say I loved to hate them.
I think it is awesome though that he has turned from mouthpiece-to-apologist. That makes him kind of awesome in my book.
"Cato"
Ya know.. someone from that organization once proposed that international child trafficking could be reduced if only the sale of children for commercial gain was legalized... being a libertarian requires a special kind of batshit smartness, to use your term ;-)
So, does being a populist.
I admire anyone who takes libertarian or populist views (even if I hate them for it) because of that inherent quality of having to really analyze and synthesize viewpoints with an air of logos behind it.
I'm kind of tired of ethos and pathos appeals in arenas like this.
Like, I completely (read: noticably and physically) cringe when I hear the phrase "American Dream."
Cringe like chewing tin foil.
OH GOD. IT'S HAPPENING.
gots to love the vinyl siding though, if I had invented vinyl oh boy
Suburbia aint all bad... Not all suburban america fits into that SUV driving atlanta mcmansion stereotype that is propogated by urban academics an photobooks... Some photos seem a little contrived in that they don't show any of the real people who live in the vast majority of suburban sprawl... Without showing how the buidlings are used, it is writing a narative based on buildings only... Ignoring landscape and human landscape or trajectories or culture...
It's only relatively recently that suburbs started to become mcmansions and upper-middle class clone communities... The older, more developed suburban midwest for example had real community and randomness to the vegetation and houses...
The sort of "ugly beautiful" / down to earth / retro random 70's 80's 90's furniture / chorme meets orange colored fabric meets red carpet / brilliant eclectic tackiness / lived in / people would rather walk and ride their bikes across fields and lawns and pavement and curbs, band of kids on bmx's, jump your cul de sac curb, cut across yards, past your winding street pattern and toss the bike over the fence, lower middle-class, goonies 80's, sustainable (people reuse everything, from your grandma's old rockingchair to your neighbor's yard sale retro coffee table), neighborhood barbecuing, trick-or-treating, mini-van and retro wood pattern stationwagon or 35 year old pickup truck driving, star wars generation, goonies or bart simpson america, fishing trip, multi-colored siding non-pretentious, nothing fancy or dressed up, but organically evolved suburbia... people just up-and-plant a tree or do up their garden as they see fit hand built sandbox or playground suburbia... full-of-memory suburbia that consists of real down to earth people, safe neighborhoods for families, hard working middle-income families and decent good natured neighbors who all know each other... invited the neighborhood over for a summer barbecue... ride your bike down to the creek and catch frogs and feed them fireflies... then head down to 7-11 for slurpies and football cards... safe enough to leave your back screen door unlocked and walk into your neighbor's house familiarity kind of suburbia... people prefer walking around the neighborhood to driving suburbia... the big overgrown willow tree landmark kids would climb on and swing on the vines like tarzan suburbia... go fishing in the pond next to the fire station suburbia...
That's the kind of "eclectic evolving" suburbia I grew up in... So not all of suburbia is like the upper-middle class lifeless homogeneity or identical box mcmansions of recent failed developments... there are actually some older suburbs that have real communities and local histories and character... Where every cheap lower-middle-class home is a different color of siding, nothing matches, but to be frank, it's nice, unpretentious... I go back there and it amazes me that things have remained the same, neighbors still live there, except that vegetation has become so much larger, trees are huge now...
Plenty of memories there...
yeah... boston has some nice suburbs... alston, brookline, further out places like waltham etc. suburban communities which have been around for quite a while
streetcar or transit accessible, quiet, and pedestrian
i think if you gave people, suburbanites a choice, most people would rather walk or hop on a streetcar or bike to a place than drive a car... it's just nicer...
i think communities, whether in a city or in a suburb take time to develop... there is the element of undesign, the falling into randomness that is necessary to take over and create some local memory and history there... so your urban design can only do so much... provide ammenity for community... the real thing, real community and livability is something that requires time and happens when the thing takes on a life of its own, when people take ownership of the space and fuck up your pristine little design in some way... make it their own... 2 cents
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